In light of the ongoing global financial climate, most world markets and sectors continue to be adversely impacted, including the Islamic finance sector, which is currently facing regulatory and practice-related reforms.
report recently published by the Deloitte Middle East Islamic Finance Knowledge Center (IFKC), entitled Empowering Risk Intelligence in Islamic finance: Managing Risk in Uncertain Times addresses and investigates the important issues in practice and regulation in Islamic finance in the current market challenges………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin launched a RM2 billion syariah-compliant financing fund for small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Muhyiddin said the loan scheme, announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak in the 2012 Budget, reflects the private sector’s seriousness in supporting the federal government’s efforts to promote economic growth.

The scheme will be managed by 13 Islamic banking institutions with the federal government providing a two per cent rebate of the bank’s profits, he said when launching the scheme at Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Datuk Perdana ……………………………………….Full Article: Source

The International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC), a member of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Group, signed a $180m syndicated structured Murabaha Agreement with Societe Anonyme Marocaine de l’Industrie du Raffinage (SAMIR) in Morocco, for the import of crude oil and petroleum products.

The agreement was signed by Eng. Hani Salem Sonbol, Acting CEO of ITFC and Eng. Jamal Ba’amer, General Manager of SAMIR in the presence of H.E El-Sheikh Mohammed Hussei Al-Amoudi, Chairman of the Board of SAMIR………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Syarikat Takaful Malaysia Bhd (Takaful Malaysia), was listed among the top five companies in the 2012 edition of OSK Top Malaysia Small Cap Companies - 30 Jewels, launched today.Takaful Malaysia has recently concluded its 2011 financial year on a high note with record profits exceeding the RM100 million mark for the first time.

In its report, OSK Research gave Takaful Malaysia a fair value of RM4.42 per share pegged at 10 times financial year 2013 price earnings multiple…………………………………………Full Article: Source

HSBC Holdings Plc’s (HSBA) Islamic risk management business posted double-digit growth last year on rising demand for Shariah-compliant hedging and investment products.
“The depth and variety of these Shariah-compliant risk management products are now almost on par with conventional,” Abhishek Mishra, head of multi-asset structuring at HSBC Global Banking and Markets, Middle East and North Africa, said in an e- mailed statement. He forecasts similar growth in the bank’s Islamic hedging and investment business in 2012………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Islamic lenders in Libya, where some banks offer Shariah-compliant services, may attract some of the estimated 15bn dinars ($12bn) outside the banking industry, he said. Total commercial banking assets were about 71bn dinars at the end of 2011.
The nation, where almost all the 6.7mn people are Muslim, saw its economy shrink 61% last year after an uprising that toppled its ruler of 42 years Muammar Gaddafi………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB), one of the largest Islamic banks in Qatar and one of the top-five Shari’a-compliant banks in the world, has announced the signing of a deal with the Middle East Dredging Company (Medco) to finance the company’s requirements to undertake access channel dredging work at the New Port Project.
Earlier this month, the steering committee for the New Port Project awarded a key dredging contract to Medco and that company approached QIB for the financing necessary to purchase the machinery, equipment, labour and other necessary works needed to execute the contract………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Oman’s first Islamic bank, Bank Nizwa, announced an Initial Public Offering (IPO) worth about USD 156 million for 600 million shares which come to 40 percent of its paid capital, on Monday.
“The bank is offering 600 million shares, with a par value of 102 baisaseach, including two baisas for meeting issue expenses,” an earlier bank statement said.The IPO guidelines state individuals can acquire 1,000-100,000 shares,while the remainder is up for acquisition by companies at a maximum of 10percent each………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The latest global regulatory standards on bank capital adequacy, stress test and market liquidity risk called ‘Basel III’ will be introduced for Omani banks by the Central Bank of Oman (CBO) next year.
“A road map has already been finalised and revised rules shall accordingly be finalised by December 2012 and implementation in 2013 onwards in accordance with the timeline set under Basel III,” said Hamoud Sangour Al Zadjali, Executive President of CBO………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Swiss lender Credit Suisse is advising Qatar First Investment Bank (QFIB), a private equity firm, on a listing of all of its shares on the Doha bourse, two bankers with knowledge of the deal told Reuters on Sunday.
QFIB, which sold its 41 percent stake in Qatar Engineering and Construction Company (Qcon) for $77 million last week, has said it is expecting to list in Doha by November. Spokespeople for Credit Suisse and QFIB were not immediately available for comment………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Standard Chartered, the UK bank that depends on Asia for most of its profit, and Barclays are expanding in Saudi Arabia as oil above $100 (Dh367) a barrel and record bond sales bolster earnings in the biggest Arab economy.
“We’d be crazy to limit ourselves to a handful of bankers when we can see oil prices are going to sustain the Saudi economy for the foreseeable future,” Rory Gilbert, the head of Middle East and North Africa at London-based Barclays’ wealth management unit, said in an interview last week in Dubai………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The largest and first bank of its kind in Egypt, Faisal Islamic Bank of Egypt, today signed a phased agreement with ITS (International Turnkey Systems) Group, a leading solutions provider for both Islamic and conventional banks, to deploy ETHIX-Financial Solutions, the leading banking technology solution from ITS.
The solution is being deployed as part of Faisal Islamic Bank’s aggressive expansion plans in Egypt, a market that is set to witness exponential growth in the Islamic banking sector. (Press Release)

Demonstrating its ability to generate revenue, keep costs under control, and engineer an early move to profitability, the Barwa Bank Group posted a full year net profit of QR244mn in 2011, up 882% on QR25mn in 2010.
Barwa Bank’s total assets increased by 143% to reach QR19bn in 2011, which was driven by a 354% growth in the financing portfolio (from QR2bn to 9bn). Customer deposits trebled from QR3bn to QR9bn in 2011………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Kuwait Finance House ( KFH ) won Best Bank in Kuwait and Middle East awardfrom EmeaFinance. The agency held annual assessments for best Islamic financial institutions around the globe, where EmeaFinance named KFH as Best Islamic Bank in Kuwait and the Middle East.

KFH ’s AGM for Banking Sector Mohammed Al-Fouzan stated that being named as Best Islamic Bank in Kuwait and the region cements KFH ’s commitment to offering an innovative bouquet of Islamic products and services in Kuwait and overseas, in order to meet the requirements of corporations and individuals………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank), the fourth-largest bank in Southeast Asia by asset, is aiming to grow its presence in Thailand into a full-fledged financial and banking business in three years.

President and CEO Datuk Seri Abdul Wahid Omar did not rule out fresh acquisition in the region’s second-biggest economy, although he conceded that he is not currently “in any active discussion” to buy into any existing bank in Thailand………………………………………..Full Article: Source

GIB Capital, acting as joint lead manager and joint book runner with Riyad Capital, has successfully closed Ajil Financial Services company’s privately placed 500 million Saudi riyals ($133.3m) sukuk, issued through Ajil Cayman, a limited liability special purpose company incorporated in the Cayman Islands.
The inaugural sukuk has a three-year tenor with an amortising structure and pays a coupon of three month Sibor plus 80 basis points quarterly. The sukuk was issued at par………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) Commissioner, Asif Arif said it is the SECP’s vision to promote the orderly development of a financially strong and transparent Islamic financial market, thereby increasing the outreach of Shariah compliant financial products in this pre-dominantly Islamic country.

“We see our role not only as a regulator but mainly as a facilitator and we have taken many important steps in order to translate our vision into reality”, he said………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Dubai Group LLC, the investment company owned by the emirate’s ruler, proposed paying interest of 1 percent to 2.5 percent in a $6 billion debt restructuring proposal, three people familiar with the plan said.
The overall restructuring proposal is in three parts, one for a $300 million fully secured Islamic syndicated facility managed by Citigroup Inc., another $1.1 billion secured facility provided by Natixis and a third for the $4.6 billion owed to the partially secured and unsecured lenders, one person said………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Adib Private Bank, a unit of Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (Adib), recently launched a diversified US real estate investment portfolio with Investcorp, one of largest investors in the US real estate market, as the investment manager.
The product was launched during the second edition of Adib Private Bank’s Wealth Management Seminar series. Two seminars were organized, one in Abu Dhabi and the other in Dubai, themed ‘Real Estate as a Yield Enhancement Strategy.”……………………………………….Full Article: Source

During the world economic crisis of 2008, Arab investors who were flushed with oil money dumped their money all over the world, including in Malaysia, to find the best business deals.

It was a blessing for Malaysia as well as the region because for the first time, West Asian countries began to realise that the West is not necessarily the best place to get returns for their money………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Tata Mutual Fund has announced a dividend of 20% (Rs. 2.00 per unit on Face Value of Rs.10) under the dividend option Tata Ethical Fund. The record date for dividend has been fixed as April 26, 2012.
Tata Ethical Fund is an open-ended equity scheme with an objective to provide medium to long term capital gains by investing in Shariah compliant equity and equity related instruments of well-researched value and growth - oriented companies………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Closer links between the health care and financial protection industries such as takaful insurance providers could promote public awareness on disease prevention, says Islamic insurance provider Takaful Ikhlas Sdn Bhd.
Its vice president (business operations) Wan Mohd Fadzlullah Wan Abdullah said besides taking health insurance, the public should also be aware of measures needed to prevent disease and to maintain their health………………………………………..Full Article: Source

AlexBank, one of Egypt’s biggest commercial banks, says it expects to launch Islamic financial services next April. But the country’s political divisions mean the regulatory environment in which the bank will operate is not clear.
Last year’s ouster of president Hosni Mubarak, whose regime neglected or discouraged Islamic finance for ideological reasons, has cleared the way for rapid growth of Islamic finance in Egypt, bankers believe………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The sukuk (Islamic bonds) market in the oil-rich Gulf and other countries is expected to exceed $100 billion this year to smash the record $85 billion achieved in 2011, Saudi Arabia’s largest bank said on Sunday.
Despite an expected rise in the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Malaysia is projected to remain the world’s dominant sukuk market this year, National Commercial Bank (NCB) said………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Yields on Indonesia’s local- currency Islamic bonds are climbing to a one-month high over dollar-denominated sukuk on speculation a rising fuel-import bill will disrupt the economy and weaken the rupiah.
The yield premium demanded on local-currency 4.45 percent notes due February 2018 over 4 percent dollar securities due November 2018 reached 184 basis points yesterday, the widest since March 19, data compiled by Bloomberg shows………………………………………..Full Article: Source

According to a regulatory filing on the London Stock Exchange (LSE), Banque Saudi Fransi has filed a base prospectus for a $2 billion Sukuk programme. According to its prospectus, Citigroup, Credit Agricole, Deutsche Bank and Saudi Fransi Capital are arrangers and dealers on the programme.
The programme will follow a Wakala structure. The trustee is Cayman Islands-registered BSF Sukuk, which will use proceeds from each series of certificates to purchase Ijara and other income-generating Shari’ah-compliant assets from Saudi Fransi………………………………………..Full Article: Source

GIB Capital, acting as joint lead manager and joint bookrunner with Riyad Capital, has successfully closed Ajil Financial Services Company’s privately placed SAR 500 million ($133.3 million) Sukuk, issued via Ajil Cayman – a limited liability special-purpose company incorporated in the Cayman Islands.
The inaugural Sukuk has a three-year tenor with an amortising structure and pays a coupon of three-month SIBOR plus 80 basis points quarterly. The Sukuk was issued at par………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Bond issuance out of the Middle East could rise to $40bn in 2012, more than 50% above last year’s levels, fuelled by the refinancing needs of localcompanies and the funding requirements of large new infrastructure projects, according to an executive of Standard Chartered.
At the same time, Middle East bonds are in strong demand among investors both inside and outside the region, Henrik Raber, Standard Chartered’s Dubai-based Global Head of Debt Capital Markets, said……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Over the past decade, Islamic finance has gained visibility especially with the ongoing financial crises, making the general public curious about its functionality and how it withstood the pressures of the global meltdown.
Hawkamah, in its recently launched Policy Brief on Corporate Governance for Islamic banks and Financial Institutions, identified a knowledge gap concerning Sharia-compliant finance, which needs to be addressed as Islamic finance enters mainstream finance………………………………………..Full Article: Source

From humble beginnings in the 1990’s, Islamic finance has become a trillion-dollar industry. And, despite scepticism regarding accommodation between Islamic and global finance, leading banks are buying Islamic bonds and forming subsidiaries specifically to conduct Islamic finance.
With Britain now in talks to sell part of the government’s 82 percent stake in the Royal Bank of Scotland to Abu Dhabi sovereign-wealth funds, the Islamic world’s growing financial clout is once again on display. That clout also poses a systemic challenge to the dominant way that finance is now practiced around the world………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Though it was a mere tripartite memorandum of understanding (MOU) between Qatar, Islamic Development Bank (IDB) and the Dallah Al-Baraka Group, but it deserves importantance since it has settled to a large extent a debate on whether the Mega bank, whose idea has been mooted years ago, will ever come to being and who will be its main shareholders.
In fact, two years ago a poll was conducted among those interested in Islamic finance from institutions and individuals to see whether 2010 will see that the Mega Bank to emerge that year, the majority, though modest, did not see it happening………………………………………..Full Article: Source

As modern finance falters due to unchecked greed and usurious practices, the traditional method of banking could bring salutary benefits to the worldwide financial system, ending some of the most damaging practices and introducing a sounder approach.
Moreover, the basic tenets of Islamic finance force us to rethink the ethical basis of modern monetary arrangements With Britain now in talks to sell part of the government’s 82% stake in the Royal Bank of Scotland to Abu Dhabi sovereign-wealth funds, the Islamic world’s growing financial clout is once again on display. That clout also poses a systemic challenge to the dominant way that finance is now practised around the world………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Malaysia and Kazakhstan should follow up on their memorandum of understanding (MoU) related to the implementation of an Islamic finance system in Kazakhstan, said Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Dr Awang Adek Hussin.
This would enable Malaysia, which has the expertise to lead Islamic finance at the global level, to make a more meaningful contribution towards the implementation, he told reporters after addressing some 300 residents of Kampung Padang China here Saturday………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Assets managed by the Gulf’s roughly 100 asset management companies totalled $26.5 billion, held in some 328 funds, as of December 31, 2011, the Kuwait Financial Centre ( Markaz ) has revealed.
The findings are contained in Markaz ’s new report, titled ‘GCC Asset Management & Investment Banking Survey 2012′, released at the weekend. The report takes an in-depth look at the industry across the GCC in terms of assets under management (AUM), number and types of funds managed, top managers across the various markets, fund costs, benchmarks and performance ranking and a number of other parameters………………………………………..Full Article: Source

BankMuscat, Oman’s biggest financial institution, is planning to open seven dedicated branches for offering Islamic banking services through window operations, the bank’s chief executive told Times of Oman.
“To begin, subject to regulatory approval, Meethaq will start operations with seven dedicated branches. BankMuscat has assigned RO150 million capital for the proposed Meethaq Islamic banking window operations,” said AbdulRazak Ali Issa……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Islamic banking and finance, with a total asset of $1.4 trillion and more than 1,000 institutions operating in many countries worldwide is all set for a big take off, says Professor Khurshid Ahmad, chairman of the Islamic Foundation UK and the Institute of Policy Studies in Pakistan and author of several books on the topic.
Speaking to Arab News after giving a lecture on “Global economic crisis and the role of Islamic Economics” at the Islamic Development Bank headquarters here, Ahmad said Islamic banking and finance makes an annual growth of 10 to 15 percent when conventional banks make less than one percent………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Standard Chartered, the UK bank that depends on Asia for most of its profit, and Barclays are expanding in Saudi Arabia as oil above $100 (Dh367) a barrel and record bond sales bolster earnings in the biggest Arab economy.
“We’d be crazy to limit ourselves to a handful of bankers when we can see oil prices are going to sustain the Saudi economy for the foreseeable future,” Rory Gilbert, the head of Middle East and North Africa at London-based Barclays’ wealth management unit, said……………………………………….Full Article: Source

The National Bank of Commerce (NBC) and KCB Bank Tanzania have launched Islamic banking services to meet market needs.
Tanzania Global Learning Agency (TaGLA), formerly called Tanzania Global Learning Centre (TGDLC), in collaboration with Tokyo Development Learning Centre (TDLC) has organised on May 14-June 7, this year, a videoconference workshop on introduction to Islamic finance to share fundamentals of Islamic finance with a special focus on policy makers and officials of the financial sector in Africa and Asia………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Maybank Islamic Bhd is targeting a growth of between 15 and 18 per cent this year, said its chief executive officer Muzaffar Hisham. He said the growth is achievable as it is in line with the company’s aspirations to promote Islamic banking business.
“We expect double-digit year-on- year growth of our assets this year. But I’m cautiously optimistic as we have three more quarters to go,” he told the media at the sidelines of Minggu Saham Amanah Malaysia held at Kompleks Sukan Kota Kinabalu………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Ahlibank Qatar has reported a 2% growth (year-on-year) in its net profit to QR118.4mn in the first three months of this year.
Net interest income amounted to QR126.7mn in the first quarter of this year. Total fees, commissions and other non-interest income recorded a significant increase of 37.9% to QR36.5mn vis-à-vis the same period last year………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The National Bank of Ras Al-Khaimah (Rakbank) said it has registered a first quarter net profit of Dh325.3 million ($88.5 million), up 11 per cent compared to the same period last year and 9.5 per cent over the previous quarter.
Announcing the results on Sunday, Rakbank said its net interest income for the quarter ended March 31 grew 21 per cent to hit Dh538.2 million compared to the same period last year………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Bilal Mustafa, Managing Director Bank of Khyber (BOK) said BOK is committed to cater the Banking requirements of Islamic Banking along with conventional banking facilities in a befitting manner in order to encourage the economic developmental activities.
Bilal Mustafa said that Raast Islamic Banking of BOK has trader friendly network in all major cities of the country and we are increasing BOK net-work by establishing 14 more branches by December 2012 and it will further enhance in 2013………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The delegation led by Head of Dubai Administration’s Emir, Chief Executive Director of Dubai investment corporation, Chairman of Dubai Bank , Board Chairman of Dubai Islamic Bank Mohammed Ibrahim Al Shaibani has shown interest to state of Islamic banking in the country.
Azerbaijani delegation has reported that there are no Islamic banks in the country but a range of banks applies certain elements of Islamic banking………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Saudi Arabian Mining Co., the state-run producer known as Maaden , said Saturday it is talking with a number of banks about securing Islamic loans worth up to 7 billion Saudi riyals ($1.86 billion).
The medium-term Murabaha financing will be used to finance future projects, the company said in a statement on the website of the Saudi stock exchange………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Closer links between the health care and financial protection industries such as takaful insurance providers could promote public awareness on disease prevention, says Islamic insurance provider Takaful Ikhlas Sdn Bhd.
Its vice president (business operations) Wan Mohd Fadzlullah Wan Abdullah said besides taking health insurance, the public should also be aware of measures needed to prevent disease and to maintain their health………………………………………..Full Article: Source

In 2011 alone, the Islamic finance industry grew by 24.4 per cent to reach a $1.084 trillion dollars, while the global Sukuk issuance increased by more than 60 per cent up to 84.5 billion, says Abdulrazak ElKhraijy, Executive Vice President and Head of Islamic Banking Development Group.
Commenting on the role Islamic finance plays in the modern global economy, he said that “the global Islamic Finance industry has grown exponentially in the past years and has succeeded in attracting the attention of economists, bankers, policy makers and financial regulators across the world, especially in the wake of the global financial crisis.”……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Banque Saudi Fransi has established a $2 billion Islamic bond (sukuk) program, a regulatory filing on the London Stock Exchange showed. Citigroup, Credit Agricole, Deutsche Bank and Saudi Fransi Capital are arrangers and dealers on the program, the April 17 prospectus showed.
Islamic bond sales in Saudi Arabia rose to a record $6.55 billion so far this year as the government’s spending plan encourages companies to raise funds to invest………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Al Rajhi Bank Malaysia, a unit of the world’s biggest Islamic bank, may sell its first ringgit-denominated syariah-compliant bonds to fund expansion, a company official said.
“We have a committee that evaluates all funding options and definitely, I would say sukuk is a serious option,” Mudassir Amray, Al Rajhi Bank Malaysia’s head of wholesale banking in Kuala Lumpur, said in an interview yesterday. “If we issue the sukuk, it will be the first for Al Rajhi Group. And yes, it will be a benchmark size offering.”……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Dubai-based Noor Islamic Bank has arranged more than $2 billion of debt transactions in Turkey since the beginning of 2011 and targets a further $1 billion before year-end, its chief executive officer told Reuters in an interview on Wednesday.
“There’s huge demand for financing in Turkey, mainly in the small and medium enterprises (SME) business. We’ve done $2 billion… and expect another $1 billion this year,” said Hussain Al Qemzi……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Bond issuance out of the Middle East could rise to $40 billion in 2012, more than 50% above last year’s levels, fuelled by the refinancing needs of local companies and the funding requirements of large new infrastructure projects, according to an executive of Standard Chartered PLC.
And issuers of Islamic bonds, or sukuk, have been able to tap in to a plentiful pool of liquidity within the Middle East region. About half of the new issues from the Middle East this year to be sukuk, in line with the proportion of Islamic bonds during the first quarter of 2012………………………………………..Full Article: Source